How Misto got his groovy paws
by Prankoholic
Summary: After nearly being hit by a car, the kittens ask Misto to tell them a story!


One night the kittens were out in the street playing with a piece of string.

"Do we have to play in the street? Munkustrap said it's dangerous!" said Jemima warily.

Etcetera snorted. "Do you have nine lives or what? Macavity and Bombalurina and the other tough cats do it all the time! Being a jellicle is about living on the edge!"

"But Munkustrap said there are big, heavy metal boxes on wheels that flatten you if you get in the way! Didn't you hear about Floppy? He was squashed like a bug!"

Now Victoria was also getting wary.

"I don't want to play in the street anymore either" she said.

But Etcetera still rolled her eyes. "That was just some horror tale Munkustrap made up, silly! There's never been a Floppy!"

While the three kittens bickered, only the fourth of them – Electra – saw a big box on wheels and with bright eyes coming towards them.

"It's coming right at us! Get out of the way!"

The car was very fast, and the kittens thought this was it when its' engine stopped just as they were about to be hit. The driver tried to start it a few times but it only started running again when the kittens had made it to the sidewalk.

"Hasn't anybody told you not to play in the street?" asked the magical and the phenomenal and paranormal Mr Mistoffelees, who had watched them for a little while.

"_I _told them but Etcetera wanted to be _cool _like _Macavity_ and _Bombalurina_!" said Jemima.

"And between you and me" she went on, whispering to Misto. "The other day I saw her taking cat nip with Demeter!"

Soon Munkustrap, out on his regular patrolling route, showed up at the scene as well.

"And what might be going on here? Why are you kittens so close to the street? Don't you want Santa Claws to bring you presents? Floppy didn't get presents for _years _before he passed"

"We're just playing, and it's not like we're _on _the street" said Etcetera.

"Etcetera nearly got us killed" said Jemima. "Misto had to save us from a squashy death"

"Oh, really?" said Munkustrap to Misto. "So you just happened to show up just in time?"

"He was there the whole time so we were never in any real danger" said Etcetera.

"The whole time without telling you to get off the street? I am very disappointed!"

"But I was here, wasn't I?" said Misto to his defence.

"How could you just sit there watching like some sort of Gumbie cat? What if they had been hit when you were distracted by some flea or something?"

"Oh, come on now Munkustrap! Weren't you also a kitten once?"

"I sure was, and I wasn't let out of the house until I was a year old!"

Victoria started scratching at Munkustrap. "Please, don't be mad at Misto! We won't play in the street ever again!"

All the big cats had a soft spot for the kittens somewhere, especially Munkustrap.

"As long as you learned your lesson"

All of them went to the nearest garden.

"Misto, how did you get your powers?" Jemima asked.

"Well" said Misto. "It all began when I was a wee kitten. At six weeks I was given away to a new family, with dreadful children that would pull my tail and treat me like some common sparrow! So one night when the backdoor was open, I sneaked out and never came back..."

-FLASHBACK-

_When I had escaped from home it was just my jellicle luck that it started to rain heavily, so I had to take shelter beneath a car. As I sat there waiting for it to clear up, I saw the most peculiar two legged being wandering around shouting for some other cat, her master. Then she saw me and thought I was him, and being a young and naive and hungry kitten I let her allure me with her tasty snacks._

-PAUSE FLASHBACK-

"Which is something you kittens must never do" Munkustrap interrupted. "Every two legged being that offer you snack or try to entice you with high pitched strange sounds isn't nice!"

"We _know_!" the kittens sighed impatiently.

"How could we not, the many times you've told the story of the little red Jellicle!" said Electra. "And that story with the gingerbread mouse"

"Maybe if I had been told those stories I wouldn't have followed the lady home. But, I was young and foolish, and was crazy enough to choose food and warmth over being cold and wet and reeking of gasoline" said Misto.

"Excuse me for trying to set an example" said Munkustrap, obviously picking up on the sarcasm. "Well, sorry for interrupting. Go on with your story"

-CONTINUE FLASHBACK-

_As I said, before Munkustrap interrupted me – which, by the way, is very rude! – I followed the lady home and pretended to be the cat she had been looking for. She gave me a big bowl of fish and a big bowl of cream, and soon I was so stuffed I fell asleep right in her lap._

-PAUSE FLASHBACK-

"If the story ends with the old lady cooking you I will be sad!" said Jemima.

"My story is not about Hansel & Gretel. Also, what did I just say about interrupting?"

"Munkustrap did it too!"

"No more interrupting from now on! Anybody who has a question must raise a paw"

-CONTINUE FLASHBACK-

_Where was I? Oh yes, asleep. I was having the most vivid dreams during my slumber when suddenly the sound of a hairpin in the door lock woke me up. In came a man dressed in black from head to toe and started taking things and putting them in a bag. The lady had also fallen asleep. I tried to wake her up but she was sleeping so heavily and when she finally woke up the intruder threw me in a corner and pointed at her with knife. Obviously defenceless and a tad senile as she was, I did the only thing I could and clawed at the burglar's leg and bit his ankle._

-END FLASBACK-

"Turns out she wasn't so defenceless, but a witch. And as a way of thanking me she gave me some powers. The end"

"Quite honestly" said Jemima after some thought. "You're story started out sort of weak for being a story of gaining magical powers, then it ended when it started getting exciting. Your story telling could use some work. Maybe Munkustrap could give you lessons"

Then the kittens went to play elsewhere.

"You managed to bore _kittens_" said Munkustrap. "I am impressed"

"Kittens fall asleep spontaneously; it's just what they do. They can't help it. It had nothing to do with my story being boring"

"Nobody ever falls asleep when I tell a story"

"No, but everyone usually pays attention to the grass. It grows during your stories, have you noticed?"

"I think the kittens grew during _your_ story"

Having no clever comeback, Misto did what any cat would have done during any argument and attacked Munkustrap.


End file.
